1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to musical instrument stands and, more particularly, to collapsible musical stands adapted for supporting a plurality of musical instruments.
2. Prior Art
Many devices are disclosed by the prior art for supporting musical instruments during a musical performance or at other pertinent times. The devices disclosed by the prior art seek to attack problems with regard to portability, compactness, sturdiness and ability to support more than a single musical instrument. Typical devices disclosed by the prior art provide a supporting frame with upwardly depending extensions for supporting musical instruments. A typical device disclosed by the prior art utilizes a base made by securing two base plates in a perpendicular relationship with respect to one another. To attack the problem of portability, one of the base plates is foldable upon itself and utilizes a securing member such as a wing nut or other such devices. The extensions used for supporting the musical instruments depend upwardly from one of the base plates and are mounted thereupon by bolts and nuts or other such conventional couplings. One of the most critical characteristics of any supporting structure for musical instruments is its ability to resist tipping over or otherwise causing the instruments to come in contact with each other or with the surface upon which the supporting apparatus rests. The device disclosed by the prior art fails to provide a sturdy base for the musical instruments since merely a single pair of base plates will not provide the structural stability which is needed.
Another device disclosed by the prior art for mounting musical instruments utilizes a web having three arm extensions depending outwardly therefrom to provide a base for an extension to support the musical instruments. Even where this device is collapsible upon itself, there is the inability to support heavy instruments or to provide the type of structure which is necessary to meet the characteristics described hereinabove.
The present invention substantially solves the problems left unresolved by the devices disclosed in the prior art. The present invention utilizes a pair of complementary base members coupled together by means of a variable length receiving support. Each base member comprises a central hub having three extensions therefrom, two of the extensions being pivotally mounted legs, the third extension adapted to receive the variable length spreader support. When the two members are coupled together by means of the variable length spreader support, the present invention provides a collapsible supporting apparatus for musical instruments which substantially meets all of the criteria set forth hereinabove in a manner not disclosed by the prior art.